Extensible safety suspenders



Nov. 2, 1948. R. s. ASHTON EXTENSIBLE SAFETY SUSPENDERS Filed July 4,1945 l==77rzis 2,

Patented Nov. 2, i948 UNITED STATES PATENT @FFICE.

EXTENSIBLE SAFETY SUSPENDERS Roy S. Ashton, Brooklyn, N. Y. IApplication July 4, 1945, Serial No. 603,141

This invention relates to suspenders for supporting trousers. Itsobjects are to provide a pair of suspenders with means for quickly andeasily extending the length of the supporting straps so that the usermay drop his trousers Without taking off his coat and vest to attend tothe call of nature without exposing his body to the chilling influenceof an unheated toilet or exposing valuables in the pockets of his coatand vest to loss or theft; or without detaching the suspenders from thetrousers at any point; and Without loss of valuable time in cases ofemergency.

Another object of the invention is to combine these advantages in a pairof suspenders having standard features of construction and service,which will permit of the manufacture of the suspenders with standardequipment, to be merchandised Joy the usual methods of marketing.

With the above and other objects in View, the invention relates tocertain new and useful constructions, combinations and arrangements ofparts, clearly described in the following specification, and fullyillustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which:

Fig. 1 is a front view, showing the improved suspenders applied to auser, with the front legs or supporting webs of the suspenders in theirnormal trousers-supporting positions.

Fig. 2 is a similar view, showing the front legs or webs of thesuspenders extended to permit of the quick lowering of the trousers.

Fig. 3 is a detail front elevation, broken away, of one of theconnectors.

Fig. 4 is a side elevation thereof.

Fig. 5 shows an alternative arrangement of the back straps or webs ofthe suspenders, with connecting cross-piece.

Fig. 6 is a fragmentary front view of a modified slip connector.

Referring to the accompanying drawings, which illustrate the practicalembodiment of my invention, 5 designates one front leg or strap and 6the other front leg or strap of the suspenders. Strap 5 passes throughthe slot or loop ll of the trousers-connecting fixture l8, which may beof any suitable construction to engage the waistband of the trousers orto engage the usual button on the waistband; then upward as a longparallel extension l2, terminating with a snap button or connector l3,adapted to engage the matching snap button element or connector M,carried by the slide I5. This slide is adjustable in height on the strap5 by means of the lever clamp I6, which may be of conventional con- 1Claim. (Cl. 2-325) struction and which is pivoted at 16a to the slide,

so thatthe short arm'of the lever willhave pres su-re engagement withthe strap. l

Strap 6 is of similar construction, being provided with an extension l9,terminating with a legs or straps 9 and I 0, shown in dotted lines.

Each strap then passes through the slot or loop of its correspondingtrousers-connecting fixture i i, then upward as a parallel extensionterminating by attachment to the slide buckle I la or 1 lb. These slidebuckles, mounted in any suitable manner on the back legs or straps 9 andIll, are adjustable to any desired fixed height, thus regulating thetension or pull exerted by the suspenders on the trousers.

The back legs or straps 9 and ii) are in crossed relationship, as in theusual or conventional suspenders, for the purpose of preventing thestraps from sliding off the shoulders. But, unlike the conventionalarrangement, they are not interattached at the crossing point, suchfreedom from interattachment being necessary to allow the straps to bedrawn apart sufficiently to clear the buttocks and upper thighs as thetrousers are drawn forward on the thighs in the act of assuming thesitting posture.

As an alternative arrangement, the crossed relationship of the backstraps of the suspenders may be discarded, as in Fig. 5, the strapsbeing held in position on the shoulders by an elastic cross-piece 23.

In the conventional suspenders, the trousers may be lowered only byremoving the suspender straps from the shoulders, or by disconnectingthe back strap-s from the trousers. With my improved suspenders thestraps are quickly extended in length by releasing the levers I6 and 22,thus permitting the slides l5 and 2| to slide downward on the front legs5 and 6. Or, alternatively, the front button snap elements or connectorsl5 and 20 may be disconnected from their supporting connectors, thusfreeing the extensions l2 and I9 and allowing them to drop. Thislengthening of the straps, by either method just described, permits thetrousers to be dropped below the level of the buttocks. As the trousersare slipped forward on the thighs while the wearer assumes the sittingposture, the straps assume a position on the lateral aspects of thethighs, completely out of the way.

The mechanical features of the various connecting and regulating devicesdescribed per se are all conventional, it being intended to utilize suchstandard materials and equipment as may be available; .For instance, inaddition to the device illustrated in Figs. 3 and 4, there are severaldifferent methods: or devices availablefor use. in attaching theextension I 2 to theslide element- I5, permitting quick and easydisconnection.

In Fig. 6 I show one of these several devices. A metal loop 24 is fixedto the front Suspender strap 25, and a metal connector 26 is secured tothe extension 25a. of this strap. The connector 26 is provided with a,tongue 21, which is formed with a. keyhole slot 28, which is adapted tobe coupled to the stud button 24a of the connector 24-. By

lifting the connector 26', so that the tongue 2! thereof will becomediseneagedfrom the stud button Ma the strap extension 2511 will bereleased to drop. The metal loop. z l may be secured for adjustment tothe. suspender strap in any approved manner.

It is seen that I provide improvements in suspenders. which permit ofthe wearer dropping his trousers without removing his. coat and vest.thereby protecting his body from chilling while discharging a naturalfunction, at the same time reducing the time element to aminimum, animportantconsideration in cases of emergency.

. It is understood thatvarious changes in the details of construction,their combination and arrangement, and in the use of availablematerials, may be resorted to, within the scope of this invention, asdefined by the claim hereof.

Having described my invention, I claim as new:

. A pair of suspenders comprising a pair of flexible straps adapted tobe placed over the shoulders 40 of a wearer to provide forward ends tosupport the forward side of a pair of trousers and rear ends to supportthe rear side of the pair of trousers, the rear ends of said strapshaving connecting means for coupling to buttons on the waist band of thetrousers, the forward ends having relatively long portions looped uponthemselves, a slotted connector adapted to be coupled to the forwardside of the waist band of the trouser through which each of theloopedforward straps extends, abutton snap element on the te minal of each ofsaid forward looped straps, and a slidable connector releasably clampedto each forward looped strap and provided with a button snap elementengageable by the first-named button snap. element to provide a quicklydetachable coupling between the forward terminal of the strap and theclamped connector, the looped straps providing long sliding connectionsto allow the wearer to drop his trousers without separating said strapsfrom "the trousers.

ROY S. ASHTON.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file ofthis patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS

